And then. . .

Last year, the javelinas dug up all our straight from Holland tulip bulbs just as the leaves were poking up out of the ground. We heard that they don’t like irises and will leave them alone, so in the fall we planted a few iris bulbs.  A while ago, we noticed the leaves growing- and finally a few buds appeared last week.  We’ve been seeing profuse iris blooms all around town- just not in our garden.

I photographed an event at the college on Friday for an organization I belong too- and their irises were magnificent.

Yesterday (Earth Day), we still just had 2 buds.

And then, I woke up to an (almost) open flower this morning. I couldn’t wait for it to fully unfurl, so here it is, edited with a painterly effect from Topaz Impression.

Spring is finally here!

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Cowboy Still Life

A cowboy (or western) still life is the latest assignment for our photo class. I have no idea what he expects, so I gathered together some items we have in the house and garage, bought some horseshoes, and took the photo. It will be interesting to see what creative ideas my classmates come up with!

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Tripping

Lonnie and I took a short trip over to Payson for two nights. We had never been in the area east of the Verde Valley and wanted to explore a bit (and I wanted some photo ops!). Our first visit was to Tonto Natural Bridge State Park to view the 183 foot tall travertine arch (believed to be the highest in the world).  After reading that the hike down to the bottom of the arch was strenuous and on slippery, unstable ground, we decided to save our knees and look at things from a higher vantage point- on level ground.

The arch is magnificent- I wish I could post photos from the bottom looking up instead of the top looking down! Here are two shots (basically the same except for the orientation) from one of the viewpoints at the top. That white stuff is water dripping down.

 

 

 

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Bill’s Got the Blues

I never knew his name was Bill!

It was pointed out to me that the elk on top of our Elks’ Theatre is named Bill. This has something to do with a poster found in the old building that says Hello, Bill on it (an Elks tradition?).  While the theatre was in disrepair a few (10?) years ago, Bill was languishing in Prescott Valley waiting to return to his former glory. When found, he sadly had a dozen or more bullet holes, but now he has been repaired and returned his rightful spot on top of his theatre overlooking downtown.

 

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A New Find!

I have had a delightfully busy last few days; my Rapunzel group came to town and we had a wonderful time laughing and talking and eating and drinking and touring Prescott. Unbelievably, I did not take a single photo; there were so many cell phone photos being taken, it seemed like overkill to bring out my big camera.  Before our group toured downtown on Friday, my friend, Nevin, wanted to quickly look through some antique stores to see if she could find a Blue Ridge plate or cup to add to her huge collection.  It was she who got me started on my own collection about twenty years ago, and it was my friend, Joan, who gave me some pieces in a Blue Ridge pattern that I have had such a difficult time finding since then. Blue Ridge dishes (handpainted in the 1930s and 40’s  in Erwin, Tennessee) are usually in a flower pattern- and there are dozens of patterns.  The dishes that my friend, Joan gave me have a barn and an appletree- a much less common pattern called Weathervane and almost impossible to find.  A year or two ago, I had found a platter and was thrilled.

Saturday, I was not looking for myself- just going along with Nevin, when she spotted a whole set for six in the Weathervane pattern. I gasped in astonishment- and bought it on the spot.  Here is a peek into my china cabinet at my new acquisition:

What a perfect memento of a wonderful weekend with my longtime friends!

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Butterfly Boys

When we visited Butterfly World Last week, Henry was fascinated by the butterfly that was resting on Justin’s shirt. This photo records the moment when he realized he was also wearing a butterfly!

Henry is growing up- he spent a lot of time taking photos with his mama’s iPhone.

A fun time was had by all!

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Fly Me to the Moon

The huge full moon rose ahead of us as we navigated the Phoenix freeways on our way to pick up our daughter’s family at the airport 2 weeks ago. It was bright orange and so huge that I kept forgetting to give Lonnie directions as we headed toward the airport. By the time we got back to the hotel it was no longer huge and no longer orange alas, but I did go out to the parking lot to snap a few shots before heading to bed.

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